Improvement in hooks for harrows



UNITED STATES PATENT GEEICE.

JOHN D. TRACY AND JAMES F. P LATT, OF STERLING, ILLINOIS.

IMPROVEMENT IN HOOKS FOR HARROWS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. l 71,197, dated December 14, 1875; application filed November 6, 1875.

To all whom it may concern: Be it known that we, JOHN D. TRACY an JAMES F. PLATT, of Sterling, in the county of Whitesides and State of Illinois, have i11- vented a new and valuable Improvement in Hook for Harrows; and We do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the construction and operation of the same, reference being had to the annexed drawings making a part of this specication, and to the letters and figures of reference marked thereon.

Figure lof the drawings is a representation of a side view of my hook for harrows. Fig.

y 2 is a perspective view.

This invention has relation to improve ments in. safety-hooks for harrows and for other purposes, and it consists in a gravitat' ing latch having upon its underside a lug, in combination with a hook formedon a metallic plate adapted to be secured to a harrow, whereby a complete eye is formed ou the said plate, which will conlne a link under any and all circumstances, as will be hereinafter more fully explained.

In the annexed drawings, the letter A represents a metallic plate of suitable strength, which is provided with a number of perforations, by means ot' which it is screwed or bolted to a beam, O, and with two spaced lugs, a a', which afford bearings for a gravitating and vertically-vibrating latch-piece, B. This latch-piece is provided upon its under side with a proiecting lug, b, the lower front end of which is concave, as shown at c, Fig. l, the object of which will hereinafter appear. C represents a metallic hook, cast with and forming a component part of plate A, situated at or near the front end ofthe said plate, and at such a distance from lugs aa that when latch-piece Bis thrown into the position shown in dotted lines, Fig. 1, its free end will abut against the rear end ofthe hook, and will form a close joint therewith, and an eye, d. In the formation of this eye lug `b constitutes the complement of the hook C. The eye d is opened for the admission of a'link or eye on the end of a connecting-rod, D, by throwing the latch up into the position shown in Fig. 1, and the link or eye having been engaged with the said hook is held to its engagement therewith by causing the latch to close with the hook. In practice, the free end of this latch will, in consequence of having lug b, be heavier than its other parts, and will therefore maintain its engagement with the hook, thus preventing link or loop D from getting oft' the hook under any circumstances. This result will be readily appreciated if it be taken into consideration that in hai-rows heretofore used a momentary slackening ot' the strain of the draft or a temporary halt frequentlyunhooked the link or loop from one or the other barrow-sections, and occasioned delay and trouble in renewing this engagement.

What weclaim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

The pivoted latch B, having on its under side a lug, b, in combination with the hook G, formed on the perforated plate A, and adapted to be applied to a beam, 0, substantially as described, and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony that we claim the above we have hereunto subscribed our names in the presence of two witnesses.

JOHN D. TRACY.

JAMES F. PLATT.

Witnesses: .y

W. W. SCOTT, SAMUEL WILSON; 

